Ezmerelda d'Avenir

Ezmerelda d'Avenir

Medium humanoid (human), chaotic good

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• Armor Class 17 (+1 studded leather armor)
• Hit Points 82 (11d8 + 33)
• Speed 30 ft.

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
14 (+2)	19 (+4)	16 (+3)	16 (+3)	11 (+0)	17 (+3)

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• Saving Throws Wis +3
• Skills Acrobatics +7, Arcana +6, Deception +9, Insight +3, Medicine +3, Perception +6, Performance +6, Sleight of Hand +7, Stealth +7, Survival +6
• Tool Proficiencies Disguise Kit +6, Poison Kit +6
• Senses passive Perception 16
• Languages Common, Elvish

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Spellcasting. Ezmerelda is a 7th-level spellcaster. Her spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 14, +6 to hit with spell attacks). Ezmerelda has the following wizard spells prepared:

Cantrips (at will): fire bolt, light, mage hand, prestidigitation

1st level (4 slots): protection from evil and good, magic missile, shield

2nd level (3 slots): darkvision, knock, mirror image

3rd level (3 slots): clairvoyance, lightning bolt, magic circle

4th level (1 slot): greater invisibility

Spellbook. In adition to her prepared spell Ezmerelda also has the following spells in her spellbook. She can swap prepared spells during long rest and can learn new spells similar to how wizards do it.

1st level: detect magic, identify, disguise self, alarm

3rd level: dispel magic, remove curse

4th level: fabricate

Equipment

In addition to her magic armor and weapons, Ezmerelda has two potions of greater healing, six vials of holy water, three wooden stakes, spellbook and component pouch she uses for spell ingridients.

Actions

Multiattack. Ezmerelda makes three attacks: two with her +1 rapier and one with her +1 handaxe or her silvered shortsword.

Rapier +1. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (1d8 + 5) piercing damage.

Handaxe +1. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) slashing damage.

Silvered Shortsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) piercing damage.

Curse (Recharges after a Long Rest). Ezmerelda targets one creature that she can see within 30 feet of her. The target must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be cursed. While cursed, the target has vulnerability to one type of damage of Ezmerelda's choice. The curse lasts until ended with a greater restoration spell, a remove curse spell, or similar magic. When the curse ends, Ezmerelda takes 3d6 psychic damage.

Evil Eye (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). Ezmerelda targets one creature that she can see within 10 feet of her and casts one of the following spells on the target (save DC 14), requiring neither somatic nor material components to do so: animal friendship, charm person, or hold person. If the target succeeds on the initial saving throw, Ezmerelda is blinded until the end of her next turn. Once a target succeeds on a saving throw against this effect, it is immune to the Evil Eye power of all Vistani for 24 hours.

 

 

Character Traits

    Ideal. "Evil that feeds on the innocent is the worst of all evils and must be destroyed."

Bond. "My mentor and teacher, Dr. Rudolph Van Richten, is like a father to me."

Flaw. "I go where angels fear to tread." She can be reckless endangering others while not realizing it.

Witness to Tragedy

When Ezmerelda was a little girl, her family kidnapped Van Richten's teenage son, Erasmus, and delivered him into the clutches of a vampire. Even today, years later, she can still hear Erasmus's pleas for mercy. That event haunted her childhood.

Van Richten tracked down Ezmerelda's family soon after the kidnapping, but not before the Vistani had sold the boy. Though Van Richten could have done them harm, he instead interrogated Ezmerelda's mother and father on the whereabouts of his missing son. Satisfied with their answers, he spared their lives before departing with the information they had given him. Ezmerelda witnessed Van Richten's act of mercy and was deeply moved by it.

Van Richten's Tragic Tale

At the age of fifteen, Ezmerelda, still troubled by what her family had done to Van Richten, ran away from home. After many harrowing adventures, she tracked down Van Richten two years later. Thinking she was a Vistana assassin, he put a sword to her throat and threatened to spill her blood. Ezmerelda convinced him that she genuinely wanted to help him find his missing son, whereupon Van Richten told her the saddest of tales. He had found his son, who had been transformed into a vampire spawn. When Erasmus pleaded to his father for salvation, Van Richten granted his request by ending his existence.

Farewell

Ezmerelda remained by Van Richten's side for several years, helping him track down and slay many creatures of the night. But because Van Richten could never bring himself to fully trust a Vistana, he kept secrets from her. The two vampire hunters got on each other's nerves, and their arguments became more frequent. At last, Ezmerelda suggested that they part company with some shred of their friendship still intact, and Van Richten agreed.

Ezmerelda's Secret

Since bidding farewell to Van Richten, Ezmerelda has amassed a sizable personal fortune, some of which she used to buy a wagon to carry her vampire-slaying paraphernalia. On one of her less successful adventures, a werewolf bit off her right leg below the knee, and although she avoided being afflicted with lycanthropy, Ezmerelda was sidelined for months. She commissioned a master artisan to craft a prosthetic lower leg and foot. After several tries, he delivered a prosthesis that restored her mobility. She has since adapted well to the false appendage.

The Great Vampire Hunt

While in the company of a Vistani caravan, Ezmerelda heard a rumor that Rudolph Van Richten had gone to Barovia to slay the most powerful vampire of them all. She decided that he might need help and traveled for months to reach Strahd's domain. She rode her wagon to Vallaki and learned about an old tower that seemed the sort of place Van Richten would use as a base. When she arrived there, she found some of Van Richten's belongings, but of the vampire hunter there was no sign. Although she is anxious to learn the whereabouts of her mentor, she is also eager to earn his trust and respect. To that end, she has been poring over Van Richten's research and learning about Strahd and Castle Ravenloft, with every intention of dispatching the vampire herself.

Tarokka Deck

Ezmerelda keeps a deck of tarokka cards in her wagon. Ezmerelda can use them to perform a tarokka card reading for the characters. But a Vistana cannot foretell anything about themselves.

Legendary Monster Slayer Protege

Like Van Richten, Ezmerelda is a viciously talented monster hunter. She should have pretty much all the same knowledge as her mentor. She knows the monsters of Barovia and how to hunt and kill them.

Her overwhelming amount of monster knowledge makes Ezmerelda quite confident. She shouldn't question her own knowledge and answer inquiries without hesitation or doubt. If new information surfaces to prove her wrong, she is unashamed to admit her error and will file away the new information so she won't make the same mistake twice. She sort of a quick witted prodigy when it comes to monster hunting.

Ezmerelda is always a bit overstocked with weapons and tools. She's the kind of person who would willingly carry the extra heavy backpack because she doesn't want to leave behind something she might need. When it became apparent that such weight would slow her down in combat, she got herself that wagon and never leaves it too far behind.

At this point in her life, Ezmerelda could very well be a better monster hunter than Van Richten, simply for her youth. She's physically able to do slightly more than the 70-year-old Richten in a fight. However, she's not nearly as ruthless as Van Richten, though she likes to think that she is.

Ezmerelda sees herself as Richten's creation. And, subconsciously, as the inheritor of his legend. Though she doesn't realize she's doing it, Ezmerelda often emulates Richten's quirks and mindsets in an effort to be more like the old man. However, her own rashness and more solid morality often puts her at odds with her master. Think of Ezmerelda as a rebellious youth who's trying to both become her own person while honoring her father-figure, and finding it difficult to consolidate both sides.

Family History

Ezmerelda is a Vistani who has only spent about half her life with other Vistani. She knows all about curses and the Tarroka card and general Vistani custom and language, but is quite deficient in their culture-wide friendliness. Why? Because her family was not kind.

Vistani

For Vistani deepdive it is best to look at the book "Van Richten's Guide to the Vistani". Here's just a handful of highlights.

The Vistani name for anyone not Vistani is a giorgio. A giorgio who has performed some great service to the Vistani may be redubbed a giogoto through a blood rite. A Vistani won't cheat a giogoto, and may offer even more information than they asked or paid for. And a giogoto is always welcome to spend the night in a Vistani camp.

Vistani don't age normally and it's uncertain if they can actually die of old age. The theory goes that they grow from childhood at whatever pace suits them, get to a degree of physical maturity that they like, and stop. There are 'old' Vistani, because they have great respect for their elders. But a Vistana's appearance is no indicator of their age. Most Vistani eventually stop counting "giorgio years" and will just make some cryptic remark about the nature of time and how brief mortal spans are if you ask them their age. So Ezmerelda, whom we know to only be in her 20s or so, is extremely young for a Vistana.

Vistani caravans are always led by a female seer, called the Raunie. The fact that the group near Vallaki is led by two brothers is a sign that something is wrong.

Vistani have their own language called the Patterna which is a cobbled together mess of gods-only-know how many different languages. It is extremely information dense, though - they can communicate very complicated ideas in only a few words. They also use a series of marks similar to hobo marks called Tralaks for long-lasting written communication, usually as tips or advice to other caravans that pass that way.

Mistress of Disguise

Ezmerelda owns a Disguise Kit, several alternative outfits, and a few wigs. She is proficient with the Disguise Kit and has expertise in deception. Meaning she's really, really good at disguising herself. Here are her three 'stock' characters that she can use.

Bombshell

Sometimes the best disguise is being the most obvious thing in the room. She dons a voluminous blonde wig and dresses in fine (and alluring) clothing, adding makeup both to enhance her looks and subtly disguise the features that mark her as Vistana. She tailors this one's behavior based off where she is and what she's doing, but the character is always bold, proud, and at least a little flirty. Her fancy clothing, like her hair, tends towards the voluminous, allowing her to stow weapons under all the frippery. She also had the clothing altered such that it is very easy and swift to remove all the foofy bits so she can rapidly get at her weapons and be free to fight if needed.

Nondescript

An array of characters based on the idea of appearing 'normal.' As usual, she uses makeup to alter her distinctive Vistani facial features, and pairs it with a simple brown wig of straight hair that falls just past her shoulders. The simple design allows her to restyle the wig (sometimes incorporating some of her own hair) to give an array of different looks.

Vistani are not popular in Barovia or in many other lands. And she doesn't travel in a self-sufficient caravan, leaving her dependent on giorgios for the necessities of life that she can't find for herself. As a result, she generally dons a disguise when going into town in order to hide her Vistani nature. Even though her Boemite Vistani Tribe 'you like me' aura can get her into most places a Vistani still draws a lot of attention that she'd often rather not have.

When in disguise, Ezmerelda is always armed. She always finds a place to hide her component pouch, she may strap her shortsword or handaxe to her back. The Rapier is harder, which is why she likes the Old Lady disguise, because it lets her carry the hollowed out walking stick that her rapier fits inside of. If she can get away with it, she'll try to incorporate the walking stick into any disguise she can.

The Poisoner

Ezmerelda has a Poisoner's Kit that she is Proficient with. In addition to the regular poisons that take a lot of time to make, she knows how to make a few extra things:

Positoxins

Unlike a normal poison, positoxins require Holy Water as a base ingredient. Furthermore, crafting one consumes a use of Channel Divinity from the crafter or a willing assistant. Thus Ezmerelda presently unable to make more without help from a Cleric or Paladin. Positoxins are special in that they explicitly bypass the resistance or immunity an undead creature has against poison or the poisoned condition.

Habits and Flavor

Ezmerelda talks and interacts with animals as if they can understand her and they probably can.

Will scratch or draw Tralaks onto things as warning signs.

If she notices a Tralak she'll usually adjust her actions based on it, but not explain why or point out the Tralak. For example, if she spots a mark that indicates a place is haunted, she'll recommend the party spend the night somewhere else. If they ask why, she'll tell them the place is haunted. She won't explain how she knows this unless someone explicitly asks her. And even then, she might be evasive.

Always knows the direction and distance to the nearest river, good place to ditch vampires.

Performs 'Safety Checks' to make sure she's not interacting with monsters. She always provides the materials for these checks. To test for Lycanthropes, she'll have you lay your finger on a silvered sword. To test for Vampires, she'll have you dip your finger in a vial of Holy Water, immerse yourself in a river, enter a home uninvited, or she'll check for your reflection in a mirror. Until you have passed her safety checks, she doesn't trust you. You may have to re-pass them at various points.

Routinely uses Detect Magic and Identify as rituals to check people and things for contaminating magic.

As she knows she is hunting a Vampire, she's cautious about its Charm. If you have been away from the party within the last 24 hours, she doesn't trust you. This is part of why she spends time near Van Richten's tower - an antimagic field suppresses a vampire's Charm effect, so when she needs to be absolutely sure she's thinking properly or that someone isn't Charmed, she goes there.

Is very cautious about curses and cursed objects. Her ability to lay curses makes her very much aware of how powerful they are.

May make references to places, events, and beings not native to Faerun. As a Vistana she traveled across the plans of the multiverse.

She is extremely fond of her vardos wagon -- it's her base of operations, mode of transport, and home. "Angry" is an understatement if somebody would blow it up. And angry Vistani are prone to curse people.

She doesn't like people knowing about her false leg and goes to significant lengths to keep it a secret. She will only remove it in the privacy of her wagon, with the door locked. If you want to set off a nice character-building RP scene, have something happen that reveals her false leg - arrow gets stuck in it, somebody walks in on her when she's removed it, etc.

She has a number of extra scars from a life lived hunting monsters without regular access to magical healing. She keeps most of them covered.

Complications

Ezmerelda is Vistani and she learned that Barovians don't like Vistani. Thus she is not welcome in any town in the valley. She can circumvent some of this by putting on a disguise, and an average person has little hope of seeing through it.

Ezmerelda is used to keeping secrets. Vistani are not open with information about themselves and what they can do and Ezmerelda is used to playing her cards close to the chest. Add to that, she's a phenomenal liar and it's very possible that she could be reflexively keeping secrets from the people she is traveling with.

Ezmerelda has a temper. She's not the screaming and yelling type (no Vistani on record are) but she may very well curse someone in the middle of town if they inflict a significant wrong on her or go opposed to her ideal.

Ezmerelda has an option available to her that other non Vistani people don't - she can leave Barovia. Ezmerelda may decide that she's not ready to fight Strahd yet and, since she's effectively ageless, she might bail. She might decide to come back in a decade or three when she's had time to refine her magic and get better at fighting, then hop in her wagon and drive off into the Mists.

Ezmerelda's Vardos

The vardos

Ezmerelda's wagon (vardos in vistana language) is parked in front of the Van Richten's tower.

Under layers of mud, this wagon sports a fresh coat of purple paint, and its wheels have fancy gold trim. A brass lantern hangs from each corner, and red drapes cover a tombstone-shaped window on each side. A steel padlock secures the back door, hanging from which is a cheap wooden sign that reads, "Keep out!"

The wagon has a hidden trapdoor in its underbelly. The trapdoor opens into the wagon and is the only safe way inside.

The inside handle of the door has a wire looped around it, and the wire is connected to a flask of alchemist's fire hanging from the wagon's ceiling. When the door is opened, the flask will fall and explode, igniting one hundred more flasks of alchemist's fire that dangle from wires like ornaments along the wagon's interior walls.

The wagon radiates an aura of conjuration magic if tested with corresponding spell. Anyone who sits in the driver's seat and speaks its command word ("Drovash") summons a pair of quasi-real draft horses, which are magically tethered to the wagon and can't be separated from it. The horses and wagon have a speed of 30 feet, and the horses heed the driver's simple commands. The driver can dismiss the horses with a second command word ("Arvesh").